Many people think that being happy or just getting happiness is about having things, but is it true at all? Or is it just an appreciation we have about what should happiness be? Today we are going to talk about an American family that moves on to Spain even when they have everything a human mind can imagine.
It is true that we always associate happiness with big things, big houses, luxury cars and a life full of comfort, but this is not the case of the James family, who had a life full of luxuries: a big car, their own house of 300 square meters, two children, the latest fashion clothes, a guest suite, a property of more than 300 square meters and even a track for their SUVs!; what we would consider “the American dream”, they have decided to leave it all behind in South Carolina and move to an apartment in Madrid in search of a life different from the one they had.
They had everything but they weren’t happy, why?
This is what Meg James, the mother of the family, tells us. She emphasizes that she needed to get away from the constant pressure of her environment in the United States. And we already know that depending on the country we are in, society is driven by one thing or another, and Meg explains that in the United States everything is based on consumerism: wanting something better, wanting something bigger and constantly comparing oneself to the person next to you seeking social validation. And the obsession with getting the same as others for pure “posturing” (without even needing it) was also affecting her children.
That American mentality (of constantly needing to be at the same level as others) was weighing on her and her family, so they decided to change their surroundings completely, moving to Spain.
A new horizon
In Madrid they have learned to look at the world in a different way and away from that social pressure. They have abandoned all need to accumulate things and now think about whether they need something before buying it impulsively. They live in a 100-square-meter apartment, with few clothes, a shared car and little else, but they have achieved something that not many people have, the ability to learn to control space and money. Do we need so many material things? The answer is clear to them: no, the only irreplaceable thing is their family.
At first, this family thought of staying in Spain for just a year, but now it seems that the land of Madrid has dazzled them and they will probably stay longer.
The value of family.
This decision to move with a backpack and little else to an unknown country has been very effective in understanding that another way of living our lives (away from voracious consumerism) is possible.
But not everyone is so lucky, and it is up to us to reconsider how we live and how much we consume (do we really need to order something new from Amazon every day?).
Cultural contrasts
As the James family was able to see, the contrast between the two societies was noticeable as soon as they set foot on Spanish soil, and while in the United States everything is about speed and efficiency, in Spain people take time to enjoy life. And of course, they do not understand success according to what they have, because they have understood that true well-being is not having more, but being able to live better (or at least, in a more humane way).
This family is a clear example that it is possible to reduce consumerism, and above all, that it is possible to leave behind a lifestyle that suffocates us with comparisons and compulsive purchases. As we have said, it is not about having but about being, and what began for them as a journey of “spiritual retreat” has made them reconsider their priorities, being now aware that the most valuable thing we have are the people with whom we walk the path.